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Fantasy Pool Look: Move stud 'D' up your playoff list, Part 2

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Fantasy Pool Look: Move stud 'D' up your playoff list, Part 2

It is no secret the power play is the most important element of offense in the playoffs. This makes the players on the man advantage the most fantasy-worthy in terms of playoff pools. Defensemen who quarterback the PP actually see their production rise by as much as 40 per cent. Moving them up your draft list a no-brainer. In part two of a two-part piece, FPL will take a look at the Eastern Conference quarterbacks (Click HERE for our look at the West.

Atlanta
This team was looking all season long for a suitable power play quarterback and they finally found one in February with Alexei Zhitnik. After deciding Braydon Coburn was not ready, while Steve McCarthy and Niclas Havelid proved unsuitable, the Thrashers went out and got Zhitnik. If you like Atlanta players for your playoff pool, then Zhitnik should be right up there on your list. He has 14 points in 15 games since joining the team and while that would be a little high in terms of what to expect in the post-season, it won't be that far off if the team gets out of the first round. He is the only option on Atlanta's as far as fantasy hockey is concerned.

Buffalo
The Sabres have several options on the point, the best of which is Brian Campbell. That being said, Campbell regressed significantly last post-season, posting just six assists (and no goals) in 18 playoff games. In fact, Henrik Tallinder was the rearguard who stepped up for them, tallying eight points in just 14 contests. Teppo Numminen, Toni Lydman and Dmitri Kalinin can all put up seven or eight points in a prolonged playoff run. Jaroslav Spacek can put up as much as a dozen. My favorite dark horse is rookie Nathan Paetsch. The 24-year-old will have to prove himself in the first round. If he does that, coach Lindy Ruff will use him in more and more situations and you could see him surprise. Paetsch had a run this season of 17 points in 24 games, but that was when Spacek and Lydman were both sidelined with injuries and Paetsch got the ice time he needed.

Montreal
Seeing as Sheldon Souray is currently tied for the NHL record for power play goals by defensemen, it's safe to say he will contribute with the man advantage in the playoffs Â– if they make it. Andrei Markov is also having a career season and his production should also go up a little when the second season begins. The only other offensive rearguard that may put up decent numbers is Mark Streit, but he has played a lot as a winger lately and does not really quarterback the power play.

New JerseyPaul Martin has had a disappointing year this year by fantasy standards, but Brian Rafalski set a new career high. The latter had a fantastic playoff last year, garnering nine points in nine games while the former slipped in production. It's safe to say Rafalski is one man you can move up your draft list. The rest of the New Jersey rearguards Â– leave them be.

New York RangersPaul Mara has just five points in 17 games since joining the Rangers at the deadline, but he has the potential to be a real dark horse. He is the No. 2 man on the blue line when the Rangers are up a man and he will likely be available in the final round of your draft. If you feel New York will go two or even three rounds, Mara would be a steal. Michal Rozsival has been the quarterback, smashing his offensive career high this year. Don't expect that to change in the post-season.

OttawaWade Redden. Those are the only two words you need to know here. Yes, Tom Preissing is ahead of him in points, but Redden would be a 65-point player if he stayed healthy. Therein lies the risk. Redden has battled a groin injury all season, but c'mon Â– this is the post-season! When Redden has been at full health, he tallied 29 points in 37 games. That was from Christmas until the middle of March. His production will go up in a big way. If the Sens play 20 games, put Redden down for 16-17 points. Preissing, Joe Corvo and Andrej Meszaros can also post a good 12-13 points if given three or four full rounds to get them. Out of those three, I like Preissing the best.

Pittsburgh
The Pens' blueliners are a fantasy poolie's dream. Their role is obvious Â– there will be no surprises. Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney will get all the points while the rest of the rearguards will not. Both Gonchar and Whitney are hovering around 0.7 to 0.8 points per game. Come playoff time, prepare yourself to watch them up that by 20 per cent. Expect 0.9 to a full point per game from each the quarterbacks of one of the best power plays in hockey.

Tampa BayDan Boyle is one of the most underrated defensemen in fantasy hockey. The reality is, this guy is top five in terms of offense and is a consistent 50-point player. This season he has 63 points. For every 10 playoff games he plays, expect seven or eight points at the very least. Paul Ranger is a nice dark horse. Not only can he be had in the final round of your draft, but last season he stepped it up at the right time with six points in five playoff games. Filip Kuba is another option. He is very streaky, however, so you would have to hope that if you draft him, he will begin a good streakÂ…and not a bad one.

TorontoBryan McCabe and Tomas Kaberle sit 2-3 in Leafs scoring with 56 points apiece. Rookie Ian White is the next rearguard on the list, sitting 15th. The McCabe-Kaberle combination is the only option that should be considered in the post-season, but both already produce in the 0.7 to 0.8 points-per-game range. Do not expect that to increase too much, as these guys already get all the ice time and PP time that they need.

Darryl Dobbs' Fantasy Pool Look is an in-depth presentation of player trends, injuries and much more as it pertains to rotisserie pool leagues. Get the edge in your league - check out the latest scoop every Monday and Wednesday afternoon. Also, get the top 300 roto-player rankings on the 1st of every month in THN's Fantasy section.

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At least two teams are reportedly interested in acquiring the Sedins for their full cap hit and Canucks veterans could draw interest at the trade deadline. The Kings are looking to clear cap space by moving out Teddy Purcell.

The ongoing struggles of the Vancouver Canucks this season generated some speculation over possible roster moves.

By late-November, The Province's Jason Botchford suggested the Canucks could get an early start on deciding which players to move by the March 1 trade deadline. He felt veterans such as Ryan Miller, Alex Edler, Alexandre Burrows and perhaps even Daniel and Henrik Sedin could be on the move.

Botchford said he knows of two teams that would be willing to acquire the Sedins for their full combined salary-cap hit of $14 million. If the Canucks were to pick up part of that cap hit (which runs through 2017-18), he thinks more clubs would be interested.

The sticking point, of course, is the Sedins' willingness to be traded. So far, they've given no indication that they want out of Vancouver. As Botchford points out, such a move would likely have to take place in the off-season.

Even if the Canucks put the Sedins on the block, they're unlikely to fetch a significant return. While they're still putting up solid numbers (17 points in 26 games), the 36-year-old twins are well past their prime. Teams aren't going to give up a lot for a couple of fading stars. Picks and prospects, sure, but nothing that would immediately reverse the Canucks' fortunes.

As for Miller, he and Canucks management could be willing to work out a contract extension. Botchford's collegue Ben Kuzma doubts the Canucks place the 36-year-old goalie on the block by the trade deadline.

Kuzma notes Miller's stats aren't great this season. However, he feels he'll still be a good fit with Jacob Markstrom, buying some time until promising goalie prospect Thatcher Demko is ready to move up. He wonders if Miller might be agreeable to a two- or three-year deal worth between $4-$4.5 million per season. That's a significant pay cut from Miller's current $6-million annual salary.

Considering Miller's no longer an elite goaltender, he probably won't get much better than that on the open market. He could test next summer's free-agent market, but will likely find few decent offers. He could prefer to avoid uncertainty over his future by staying in Vancouver for a reasonable contract.

KINGS TRYING TO FREE SPACE WITH PURCELL MOVE

Los Angeles Kings left wing Teddy Purcell cleared waivers over the weekend. Signed as a free agent last summer to a one-year, $1.6-million contract, the 31-year-old managed only two points in 12 games this season. Illness and a lower-body injury sidelined him in October, and he was a healthy scratch in the Kings' last four games.

With 21 of 30 NHL teams carrying $2 million or less in cap space, moving Purcell's cap hit is difficult right now. The Kings obviously want to shed his salary without taking any back in a deal. They could be waiting until later in the season to find the right deal.

Rumor Roundup appears regularly only on thehockeynews.com. Lyle Richardson has been an NHL commentator since 1998 on his website, spectorshockey.net, and is a contributing writer for Eishockey News and The Guardian (P.E.I.).For more great profiles, news and views from the world of hockey, subscribe to The Hockey News magazine.

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Coyotes’ Cunningham alert, awake and joking with teammates, but remains in hospital

There’s still no word as to what exactly caused Coyotes AHL captain Craig Cunningham to collapse on ice, but the 26-year-old was in contact with teammates and cracking jokes earlier this week.

More than two weeks after collapsing on the ice ahead of an AHL game between the Coyotes and Jets AHL affiliates, news has come that Craig Cunningham is starting to get back to his old self.

According to Tucson’s KVOA, Cunningham spoke with two teammates, Brandon Burlon and Christian Fisher, via FaceTime earlier this week, and both said that things are starting to look up for the 26-year-old Cunningham.

Fisher added that it was nice to see Cunningham, the captain of the Coyotes’ AHL affiliate Tucson Roadrunners, smiling again. But he wasn’t just smiling, he was also trying to have a good time with his teammates while hinting that he wants to get back on the ice.

“He was cracking jokes just as if he were here the next day," Fisher told KVOA. "It was pretty funny. He said he wanted us to come pick him up and take him to the rink. He was joking around. Stuff like that.”

The mystery still remains as to what caused Cunningham’s collapse, however. It came just moments before the game was set to start and resulted in medical staff in the building cutting away his equipment in order to attend to him. Cunningham ended up leaving the ice on a stretcher, was transported to hospital and he remained in critical but stable condition for much of the past two weeks.

Still, though, Burlon and Fisher said that there’s no “definitive answer” as to what caused Cunningham’s medical emergency. That’s more than all right with both players, too, so long as Cunningham’s health is starting to look up.

"What we do know is that he is doing well and we are moving forward here," Fisher told KVOA. "Hopefully, he will start the road to recovery now.”

Cunningham has suited up for 319 AHL games over the course of his career, netting 101 goals and 203 points, as well as scoring an additional three goals and eight points in 63 NHL games. He was drafted 97th overall by the Bruins in 2010, but was picked up by Arizona off waivers from Boston during the 2014-15 season.

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Dubnyk carrying Wild and putting together a Vezina-type season

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Dubnyk carrying Wild and putting together a Vezina-type season

How good has Devan Dubnyk been for the Minnesota Wild this season? Well, according to his coach: "If he was in Toronto, there'd be no Carey Price."

It’s nowhere on the scale of grand gestures when compared to the ‘triple low-five’ P.K. Subban and Carey Price used to do at center ice, but Eric Staal and Devan Dubnyk of the Minnesota Wild have a rather interesting post-win ritual. At some point, Staal comes to Dubnyk in the dressing room and says, “You looked like you knew what you were doing tonight,” and the two of them bump fists. “I appreciate that,” is Dubnyk’s response. “I’m just trying to trick everybody just a little bit longer.”

But the fact of the matter is, Dubnyk is not tricking anyone. He’s playing in the best league in the world, one where posers and phonies get exposed pretty quickly. And he’s not only playing, he’s been a dominant force for the Wild this season. Among goalies with a minimum of eight appearances this season, no goalie matches Dubnyk’s .946 save percentage or his 1.65 goals-against average. His four shutouts also leads the league. With 35 saves in a 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs Tuesday night, Dubnyk was a winner in his 300th career start.

Them’s Vezina numbers. And Wild coach Bruce Boudreau, who knows a good sound bite when he sees one, had a pretty bold proclamation when it came to Dubnyk’s status among his brethren in the NHL this season. “If he was in Toronto, there’d be no Carey Price,” Boudreau said. “I’m just saying media-wise. I mean, he hasn’t allowed more than three goals in any game he’s played this year. He’s held us in. It was 17-3 in shots in the third period and they didn’t get any.”

Much has been made of Dubnyk’s renaissance since he adopted a technique known as head trajectory, which in its simplest terms, is tracking the puck with your head instead of your eyes. Before Dubnyk started doing it, he was out of the NHL, skating as a Black Ace as the Montreal Canadiens fourth goaltender in the playoffs. Since then, he’s been an elite goaltender in the NHL and he’s being paid like one on the second year of a six-year deal worth $26 million.

And there might be a reason for that. The past couple of seasons, teams have collapsed in front of their nets more than ever, leaving a bunch of bodies from both teams in the way. In those instances, tracking those pucks has become more important than ever. “You have to pick and choose when I’m going to use my height to find pucks and when I’m going to need to get low,” Dubnyk said. “I think it’s more on the rebounds when those pucks do get through or if they hit shin pads. If you can look first, you’re eliminating moves that don’t seem to happen and you’re just more efficient. I always say it should look relatively boring when I’m back there.”

The ability to self-analyze quickly and adapt also helps. Case in point was the goal scored by Tyler Bozak, who pounced on a turnover, then undressed Minnesota defenseman Matt Dumba before firing a backhander over Dubnyk’s shoulder. Dubnyk was clearly upset with himself after the goal, but instead of falling apart, he steeled his resolve and completely shut the door on the Maple Leafs.

“That goal goes in and I give myself a quick talking to and I realize that’s not my best way to stop a puck and move on,” Dubnyk said. “And just make sure I do it properly the next time.” And for a guy who sees the ice so well, Dubnyk didn’t notice the shaft of Mitch Marner’s broken stick in front of him for the longest time. In fact, it wasn’t until Ben Smith scored. “Was that the stick or the ice? It hit something,” Dubnyk said. “I actually think it was the ice. I’ll have to watch the replay, but it skipped hard.”

Three years ago, when Dubnyk went from Edmonton to Nashville to Montreal in one season and finished in the American League, those kinds of goals would have destroyed him. But that summer, Dubnyk signed with the Phoenix Coyotes and joined Mike Smith, who was plucked off the same scrap heap as Dubnyk a couple of years before. Then came the trade to Minnesota, then he saved their season, got a big contract and hasn’t looked in the rearview mirror…except to appreciate what he has now.

“It’s a position that’s extremely mental and when things start to pile up, it’s not a position you can play if you’re second guessing what you’re doing,” Dubnyk said. “It just doesn’t work. It doesn’t work for anybody. That whole year that seemed like forever, I always believed I’d get another shot somewhere. I’ve said it before, but it just allowed me to be grateful that I have a job in the best league in the world.”

Blackhawks emergency backup Eric Semborski gets his own rookie card

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Blackhawks emergency backup Eric Semborski gets his own rookie card

Eric Semborski landed himself the opportunity of a lifetime when he strapped on the pads as an emergency backup for the Blackhawks, and now Topps has commemorated the moment with a Semborski trading card.

Eric Semborski’s dream came true when he stepped on the ice as an NHL goaltender, albeit an emergency backup, on Dec. 3, and now he’s got an incredible piece of memorabilia to show for it.

Just days after the 23-year-old made his rookie debut, trading card company Topps has unveiled the official Eric Semborski rookie card. That’s right: the 23-year-old has his very own trading card. The card is part of Topps’ NOW series, which features milestone or memorable moments and are made available shortly after the achievement.

Semborski’s stint as the Blackhawks emergency goaltender came due to regular starting netminder Corey Crawford was sent to hospital to undergo an appendectomy. The Blackhawks were scrambling to find a replacement for Crawford, and a backup for Scott Darling, when they started asking around to find an emergency amateur netminder to fill in.

Semborski, a former goaltender at Temple University, was working with children at the Flyers’ practice facility when he was called to sign on for emergency duty. Hilariously, Semborski wore a Blackhawks No. 50 jersey — which most will recognize as Crawford’s number — when he took the ice for warmup. Of the chance to stop NHL shots in warmup, Semborski said it was the best moment of his life.

Possibly the only thing that could have made the moment better was if Semborski actually got into the game and, as it turns out, that was very nearly the case. Post-game, Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said that had the Flyers scored on the empty net to stretch their lead in the Saturday afternoon contest, he would have thrown Semborski into the net for the final minute of the outing.

As for the card, there’s no chance it will be worth anything near what a Connor McDavid rookie card will be worth in a decade, but it’s certainly a nice piece of merchandise for the one-day NHL netminder.